When Two Worlds Collide
by PeskiPiksi123
Summary: When James Potter discovers a dwarf crash-landed in his garden claiming to be heir to the throne of Erebor, his 5th year summer takes a wild, adventurous turn that he will never forget. *Disclaimer - I do not own any of the characters from Harry Potter or the Hobbit and am not making any profit from this story* Please give it a go and let me know what you think!
1. Chapter 1

James Potter was not meant to be out of bed at 1.30 in the morning. He was also not meant to break into his parent's garden shed to steal his (confiscated) broom to practise quidditch. He was _also_ not meant to borrow his mum's wand to achieve this with.

However, being James Potter, he was currently doing all three.

Still, if he hadn't been sneaking about so late at night, he wouldn't have discovered the dwarf that crashed through a portal in mid-air into said garden shed.

James lit his mum's wand with a quick 'Lumos' and then cautiously stepped forward and peered into the wreckage.

"Who's there" he called out warily.

A few moments passed before a groan could be heard from underneath the planks of wood. Keeping his mum's wand out just in case but not wanting to leave the person there, James began shifting the pile until he came across someone who looked rather like an overgrown child.

"Who are you?" he asked.

The figure sat up slowly, rubbing his head. He looked around the garden, feeling dazed and rather confused, before his eyes landed on James.

"Fili, son of Vili, heir to the throne of Erebor" he said slowly, slurring his words. "Now who in Mahal's name are you? And where are Kili and Thorin?"

 **HPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTH**

James stood there in shocked silence for a moment, staring at this… man? Dwarf? What did he call him? Was he a muggle? He said heir; was he some sort of dwarf prince? The young wizard felt just as confused as this "Fili" looked; he decided it was best to try and take charge and do something.

"Right Fili, come with me; we'll go inside and get you sorted out". He didn't think telling his mum and dad about this was a good idea; they might ask questions about why he was outside at that time of night in the first place.

"I will not come anywhere with you until you tell me who you are!" said Fili angrily. Suddenly, to the great surprise (and delight!) of James he pulled out two gigantic twin swords from behind his back and pointed them at the teenager.

"Now I have no wish to hurt such a young child of men" said Fili. "But you will tell me who you are, where I am and how did I get here!"

"Well" James said slowly. "I am James Potter, a, uh, 'child of men' as you called me. I'm a wizard. Are you a wizard or a muggle?" He cringed internally, praying he hadn't just made a massive breach of the statue of secrecy.

"You are a wizard?!" exclaimed Fili. "I thought there were only five! Do you know Gandalf?"

"Only five?! There are thousands of us!" laughed James. "Who's Gandalf?"

Fili shrank back suddenly, feeling panicked. If he was in a place where there were thousands of wizards and no Gandalf, then just how far from home was he?

"I must know" said Fili. "Where am I?"

"England" said James. "I'm home from Hogwarts for the summer holidays. That's in Scotland by the way."

"Where are the Blue Mountains?" cried Fili desperately. "Where is Erebor? Am I still on Middle Earth?!"

"You aren't on Middle Earth, just Earth" said James cautiously, not wanting to panic Fili. "I've never heard of the Blue Mountains but I've heard the name Erebor before. If you come inside, we can have a look in the library for a mention of it. I think it's in a storybook somewhere."

"That is strange" said Fili worriedly. "Very well, I will come inside with you."

James smiled happily at him. Suddenly though, he frowned as a thought occurred to him.

"Mum's going to kill me if I don't fix the shed" he said. He waved his wand at the destroyed pile on the floor and said "Reparo". In an instant, the shed was as good as new.

James laughed as he led an astonished Fili inside.


	2. Chapter 2

Wizard and dwarf crept along the silent corridors of the library together, one holding out a lit candle while the other cast a wary eye over his surroundings. Fili hadn't let his guard down since he had fallen into that portal in Goblin town away from the company and landed here. He had no idea how the rest of them had fared, including his brother and uncle, which scared him more than he would admit. Everything here was so similar and yet so very different that it made him wonder just how far he was from home.

James concentrated on the wand in front of him, making sure to follow the faint light it was emitting. He had done a 'Point Me – Erebor' spell and hoped for the best. He knew he had heard that name some when before, but for the life of him he could not remember when or where!

Suddenly, the light made a sharp right turn around a corner and came to a stop at a tall bookcase. Once of the slightly larger tomes there was glowing gold. The shelf looked like it hadn't been used in a long time; a layer of dust covered the shelves and books on it.

"Children's stories" whispered James fondly.

"Sorry?!" exclaimed Fili disbelievingly.

"This bookcase contains all the children's stories that my family own. Some have been passed down through generations. I wasn't interested in a lot of them but my mum loves reading. She always used to mention a book called 'the Hobbit' and the adventure to reclaim Erebor. Accio 'the Hobbit'." The book which had a golden glow to it flew off the shelf into James' hands.

"The Hobbit? But that's…" started Fili, but James cut him off.

"I need to know where you were before you fell through that portal" said James. "Time travel is a dangerous thing and if I screw up your future because I messed up the laws of time or something, people will not be happy with me."

"I was on a journey with twelve dwarves, a wizard and a hobbit" said Fili, staring at the book in James' hands. "We were captured by goblins in a place called Goblin town."

"And down, down to Goblin town…." James murmured.

"How could you possibly know something that's happening right now?" said Fili angrily.

"I'm sorry" said James, raising his hands in a placating gesture. "I know this all seems confusing and horrible but you can't read this book; if you read your own future you would be in terrible danger! Just give me an hour to read this and then I promise I will tell you everything I can. I've never read this book before you see. I've only heard snippets from my mum."

There was silence for a few moments, but eventually Fili relented. James lit the fire and sat down in a comfy armchair to read, while Fili took the one opposite him and brought out his pipe.

"Mum's gonna think I've been smoking" mumbled James under his breath.

"What was that?" said Fili.

"Oh nothing, nothing" said James. And with that, the two settled into a comfortable, if not slightly anxious wait.


	3. Chapter 3

A short while later, James snapped the book shut and looked up at Fili with wide, astonished eyes.

"What is the matter?" said Fili anxiously. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Well…" began James nervously. He wondered what to say; clearly, he could not tell Fili that he was destined to die alongside his brother and uncle during the battle of the five armies. He racked his brain trying to come up with an excuse for his pensive attitude, but before he could respond, a strange ringing noise began to sound from inside his trouser pocket.

"What is that sound?" asked Fili curiously.

"It's a device which let's me know that somebody is trying to contact me through my fireplace" said James. "It's probably Sirius, seeing as he's the only one of my friends who stays up this late at night. Come on, let's go and see what he wants".

Relieved that he would not have to answer any of Fili's questions about the contents of the book, James slipped it back on to the shelf and turned to lead Fili back through the library and upstairs to his bedroom. Both wizard and dwarf crept silently along the ancient manor, wincing each time the floorboards creaked. James especially was dreading the thought of waking his parents; if they caught him up and about with a stranger in the house then they would confiscate his broom for the entire summer!

James' suspicions about his caller were correct, as soon as him and Fili entered his bedroom he could see Sirius' head sticking out of the fireplace. The young teenager ignored Fili's astonished (and slightly panicked expression) and went straight to the fireplace, sitting himself down on the soft rug so that he could talk to his best friend.

"Hey Padfoot, fancy seeing your ugly mug at this time of night" said James, a cheeky grin spread across his face.

Sirius stuck his tongue out and gave a very sarcastic laugh in response. "Hey Prongs" he replied. "Umm, not sure if I want to know the answer to this or not but why is there a strange short man in your bedroom at 2 o clock in the morning? Anything you want to tell me?" He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively at James and gave him a knowing grin.

"Eww Padfoot, don't be stupid" said James, pulling a disgusted face. "It's nothing like that. I sort of snuck outside to practice quidditch and this guy literally fell out of nowhere and crashed into my shed."

"Why were you sneaking out at this time of night to practice quidditch?" asked Sirius curiously.

"Ahahaha well, funny story, I sort of turned my mum's hair blue the other day when I was bored and it's fair to say she wasn't impressed" said James, having the decency to look a tiny bit sheepish. Luckily Sirius found the whole thing hilarious, and within seconds the two boys were laughing away.

"Mate that is brilliant!" exclaimed Sirius. "Maybe I should try that on my dearest mother next time she says something horrible….. anyway, you were telling me about the strange man that crashed into your shed!"

"Oh yeah" said James distractedly. "Well, he's called Prince Fili and he says that he's from a place called the Blue Mountains and is heir to the throne of Erebor. I had no idea that Erebor even existed!"

"Well, that is certainly interesting" said Sirius, a thoughtful expression crossing his face. Suddenly, James could hear a small crash coming from Sirius' end, along with muffled swearing and more movement.

"Padfoot, is there someone in the room with you?" asked James. "And before I forget, what made you call at this time of night?"

"Well" began Sirius. "About half an hour ago I was sat on the roof looking at the stars when a small dark-haired man fell out of mid-air and crash landed next to me. It's funny because he says that his name is Prince Kili and that he is also from the Blue Mountains and is heir to the throne of Erebor".


	4. Chapter 4

Sirius Black was doing something rather unusual for a fifteen-year-old boy. He was sat on the roof of 12 Grimmauld Place, staring at the stars. He had climbed through the skylight window that his father used for astronomy after a rather explosive row with his parents. His mother had gone off on one of her usual spiels about how filthy muggleborns were and how he shouldn't be associating with them. Sirius hadn't been too bothered until she started mentioning that 'god-awful redhead in your classes' meaning Lily Evans. He felt it was his solemn duty to defend James' crush from the old hag, and besides, he considered her to be a friend (although he would probably never admit that out loud).

That was over an hour ago. It was currently 1.30 in the morning and he still hadn't moved from the roof. He didn't mind though, the night was fairly warm, and the stars were out in full force. He had already spotted his namesake and was now searching the skies for other constellations. Just as he was admiring Orion's belt, the sky began to shift and change as though it was morphing. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a tear seemed to rip through the space right above him and create a hole, out of which fell a man who crashed on the roof beside him.

Sirius for once in his life was stunned into silence. Just as he finally came to his senses, the man groaned and slowly pushed himself up into a sitting position. The two looked at each other warily, neither sure who would make the first move. Sirius couldn't help but notice that although the man seemed a lot older than him, he was really rather short. This made him slightly more confident that he could beat him in a fight if necessary; that is, until he saw the blades held in place at the man's belt. He gulped.

"Who are you and why did you fall out of the sky?" said Sirius in what he hoped was a calm, non-threatening voice.

The man looked around with confusion. It appeared that he had not noticed that he had literally fallen from mid-air onto a roof.

"My name is Kili, son of Vili" he said slowly. "Prince of Erebor, if we ever get there. Who are you? Is this some sort of secret village? But it can't be, I fell down into the caves…."

Sirius pondered what to say while he tried to absorb all of the information. This man was a prince? Where was Erebor? He had never heard of that place. And what was he saying, something about caves?

"Hello Kili" he said, trying to smile cheerfully. "My name is Sirius Black, and this is No. 12 Grimmauld Place in London. It's not a village, it's a big city. What were you doing in caves? Did you fall off your broom or something, is that why you fell?"

Kili shook his head in a bewildered manner. "I do not own a broom, and even if I did I would not know how to fly one. I imagine Gandalf would though. Myself and my company were travelling through the caves in the Misty Mountains when we were captured by Goblins. My brother Fili fell off the edge of a walkway and before I knew what I was doing I had jumped off after him. I thought I would meet my maker when I hit the bottom, but I never did; it seems I have somehow ended up on this roof instead."

A million questions flew through Sirius' head, but rather than bombard the poor man he decided to go and get some help. Not from his family of course; they would probably murder Kili for being an intruder. Sirius stood up carefully and offered him a hand.

"Come on" he said enthusiastically. "I don't have a clue how you got here or where you have come from so I'm going to need some help. I'll contact James through the floo. Careful making your way into the house, if we wake up mother and father there will be hell to pay, and not in a funny sense either".

"Alright" said Kili brightly. His Uncle Thorin had always said that he was too trusting of strangers, but to be honest he couldn't see this tall skinny lad being any threat. "Can I ask you something though? What is floo?"

Sirius looked at Kili and sighed. He had a feeling this was going to be a long night…..


	5. Chapter 5

After Sirius had finished telling his story, and Fili had stopped trying to scramble through the fire to get to his brother, James sat on the floor pondering what to do next.

"I demand you let me see my brother" said Fili indignantly, with a touch of defiance in his voice. "I need to know that he is alright, and we need to try and find a way back to our company".

"For the last time" sighed James, "I can't let you go jumping into the Floo Network on your own; you could end up Merlin knows where. Sirius and Kili will just have to come to us."

"Well, I can't use the Floo for the same reason" said Sirius. "I don't want to risk Kili jumping in on his own and ending up with the wrong kind of wizards".

"Why don't you use your brooms?" said James suddenly. "It's only an hour tops from your house to mine; you've done it loads before".

Sirius pondered the thought for a few seconds before nodding in agreement. "Alright" he said. "I'll meet you in your front garden in an hour".

"We'll be waiting" said James with a smile.

In a flash, Sirius had gone, and the fire returned to its normal orange colour.

"Let's go to the kitchen" James said to Fili. "I bet you're hungry after the night you've had; I'll see if one of the house elves can rustle us up something to eat".

Fili nodded in agreement, then a puzzled look came over his face. "James, what's a house elf? Elves live in the forest…."

The young wizard couldn't help it; he burst out laughing as the two headed towards the kitchen. Fili was definitely in for a shock….

 **HPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTH**

High above the sky somewhere just north of London, two figures flew among the clouds, their bodies barely visible between all the mist.

"How are you doing Kili?" shouted Sirius at the top of his voice.

"THIS IS BRILLIANTTTT!" the dwarf yelled as he threw his arms back. "WAHOOOOO!".

Sirius shook his head fondly and carried on in the direction of James' family home. He was very interested to see what Kili's brother was like; already he had taken a liking to the brown- haired dwarf so he was confident that the brother would be just as interesting.


	6. Chapter 6

As promised, about an hour after the two had set off, a rain-soaked Sirius and Kili landed in James' front garden. Kili had barely had chance to dismount his broom before he was tackled into a huge hug by his brother. The two dwarfs stayed like that for a few seconds before touching foreheads gently.

"Are you alright?" Fili asked his brother anxiously.

"I'm fine brother" said Kili with a smile. "I'm just glad to be with you once more. When you fell into that cavern I thought…. I thought the worst had happened."

"What on earth possessed you to follow me down there?!" said Fili gently. "Mahal knows I'd never forgive myself if anything happened to you because of me."

"I just couldn't bear the thought of leaving you behind, even if, if….". Kili couldn't finish his sentence, but luckily Fili understood his brother's meaning, so pulled him into another hug instead.

"Well now, the worst has not happened, and we are together again, so let us praise Mahal and be grateful" he said softly.

James and Sirius, having already greeted each other, watched the two brothers with sympathy in their hearts. They couldn't imagine what it must be like to be so far from home in a strange new world.

"Well Fili, Kili, we need to figure out a way to get you back to your home" said James, rubbing his hands together thoughtfully. "Why don't we go and have a look at where you arrived Fili and see if there are any clues still there?".

The others nodded in agreement, so the group made their way round to the back of the house, where the newly-repaired garden shed stood tall and proud. Sirius, being the lighter of the two and the more athletic, hopped up onto a nearby wall and propelled himself onto the flat roof.

"Can you see anything?" asked Kili.

"Not as such" said Sirius. "The air feels weird though. It's like there's some sort of energy here which isn't quite normal."

The young wizard reached out his hand to touch the empty space around him. Suddenly, there was a disturbing crackling sound, and in a flash, Sirius had been pulled into a crack in the air, leaving nothing but empty space where he once stood.

"PADFOOT!" cried James.

The three stood there for a second, dumbfounded, before James made a move towards the shed.

"What are you doing?" asked Fili.

"There's only one thing for it" said James determinedly as he climbed up onto the roof. "I've got to go after Padfoot, and I'm feeling pretty confident that wherever that portal leads, it's going to be somewhere back in Middle Earth. So, I would suggest that you two come with me so that you can find your way back to your company."

Not needing much more persuasion, the two dwarves scrambled up onto the shed after the young wizard (with a little less elegance – dwarves were not built for this sort of thing after all).

"I suggest we hold onto each other" said Kili. "That way, wherever we end up we should hopefully be together".

The others nodded in agreement, so the trio of boys linked arms. James reached out in front of him to put his arm exactly where Sirius had, and they vanished into the night.


	7. Chapter 7

The sun had just begun to rise over the beautiful gardens of Imladris. The household staff were up preparing for the day ahead, and Lord Elrond was sat in his study, writing in his diary and contemplating whether to go for a ride after breakfast.

Elsewhere, Elrond's mischievous offspring, Elladan and Elrohir, were hidden behind one of the bushes in the garden, staring into a window on the ground floor.

"Do you think he's awake yet?" whispered Elladan.

"I'm sure he is" whispered his twin in response. "Erestor is always….. quick, duck!". For as he had spoken, the elf in question had opened his window to let in the fresh morning air.

The two young elves crouched down behind the bush, praying that their teacher hadn't spotted them. After a few seconds, they bravely peered over the top, but Erestor seemed to have retreated into his room.

Giggling slightly, Elladan said "I can't wait to hear his scream when he opens the door and gets absolutely soaked!".

But the two young elves never did hear their teacher's reaction to the prank they had pulled. For a loud yell and a giant splash behind them in the fountain caused a distraction.

"What was that?" said Elrohir, looking puzzled. He moved slowly towards the fountain where he could see a pile of bodies moving slowly.

"Ughhh, we're soaked!" said the one voice, sounding horrified. The figures stood up and turned around slowly.

"Where are we?" said the tallest one, who sounded very confused.

The two shorter ones groaned as they recognised their surroundings. "Well James" said Fili. "It seems we have landed straight back into Rivendell, the home of the Elves."

 **HPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTH**

Sirius felt himself being pulled and torn in all directions at once. 'This must be what it feels like to apparate' he thought to himself grimly, not relishing the thought of learning. After what felt like a long time (but was in fact a few moments) he landed flat on his back on a damp hard floor.

After the dizziness died down and he could see straight, Sirius sat up slowly and took in his surroundings. He was on a path in what looked like a very dark, murky forest. The trees were tall and overbearing, with barely any light getting through to the forest floor. The wind rustled ominously through the branches, and there was an eeriness about the place which gave the young wizard the shivers.

No sooner than he had stood up and brushed himself off, he picked up the sounds of a loud commotion nearby. Cautiously, Sirius headed towards the source of the noise. Staying hidden behind the trees as much as he could, he looked out over a branch and saw many giant spiders like the Acromantulas in the forbidden forest at Hogwarts. They appeared to be attacking what looked like a company of dwarves. Thinking quickly, Sirius decided to stay hidden but to try and help the dwarves as much as possible by fighting the spiders with his wand. He managed to stun one or two of them and cast a leg-binding curse at another which caused it to drop to the floor in a giant ball (where it promptly had an axe put through its head by a stern looking dwarf).

Just when Sirius started to panic that the dwarves might be in real trouble, a company of strange tall men arrived with bows and arrows, quickly killing off the remaining spiders. Although he had tried valiantly to conceal himself, Sirius soon felt the sharp tip of a bow at his neck.

Holding his hands in the air placatingly, Sirius turned to face the strange man. "Hello" he said cheerily, putting on a smile. "Don't think we've met before. My name is Sirius Black. Who might you be?".

The man, who Sirius noted had rather pointy ears and luminescent skin, looked at him strangely. "My name is Elethien" he replied. "You are different than the dwarves, a human no doubt. What are you doing in Mirkwood forest? This is no place for one so young."

"Well" Sirius said sheepishly, "it's sort of a long and uh, rather confusing story. I'm not quite sure where to begin".

"Very well" said Elethien. "You can tell your story to Prince Legolas and King Thranduil when we reach the palace".

And with that, Sirius found himself tied up and being taken to the palace alongside the company of very confused, tired and angry dwarves.


	8. Chapter 8

Lord Elrond paused his writing as he heard a knock on the door. His eyes widened in surprise as the small party entered.

"Elladan, Elrohir" said Elrond in greeting. "What do we have here?"

"Father, this is Fili and Kili, the young nephews of Thorin Oakenshield who were travelling with the band of dwarves you told us about who resided in Rivendell several weeks ago. And this young man is called James Potter; he claims to be from another realm."

Elrond studied the group that stood before him before his eyes lit up with recognition.

"Ahh yes" he said. "I recognise you two dwarves now. Tell me, how is it that you have ended up back in my home, separated from your party? It has been many weeks since you stayed here".

Lord Elrond listened intently as Fili recounted the tale, beginning in the misty mountains and ending with the sudden crash-landing into the Rivendell fountain.

"Adar" said Elladan suddenly, "do you think Thranduil….?"

"Yes, my son" said Lord Elrond. He bent down to his desk, where he retrieved a letter from one of the drawers. "I received a letter from Lord Thranduil, the elf King of Mirkwood, a few days ago. He spoke of how a party of dwarves and a strange human were captured after an ordeal with a group of spiders in the forest. The leader of their party, Thorin Oakenshield, withheld information, so they were thrown in the dungeons alongside the strange human, who claims to be called Sirius Black."

"Sirius!" cried James excitedly. "Thank Merlin he's okay!".

"Rest assured, although they may be in the dungeons, King Thranduil would not do anything to harm your friend, or the rest of the company" said Elrond reassuringly.

Fili and Kili groaned suddenly. "Uncle Thorin hates King Thranduil" said Fili dejectedly. "He will be too stubborn to speak, and Thranduil will keep him locked up for the rest of his days!".

"Come Fili, do not despair" said Lord Elrond. "I believe that sense may be talked into King Thranduil, stubborn as he may be sometimes. I have wanted to visit Mirkwood for some time; I believe that now is as good an opportunity as any other."

"Adar, may we be permitted to travel alongside you?" said Elrohir excitedly. "It has been many moons since we last visited Prince Legolas".

"I do not think that would be an issue" said Elrond with a small smile. "At least that way I know our home will still be standing when we get back, if I leave Glorfindel and Erestor in charge."

The twins both paled suddenly as they thought of their teacher. "Speaking of whom" said Elladan slowly, "we may have gotten a little bored this morning and….."

But the young elf never got to finish his sentence, as only a few moments later, the elf in question burst through the study doors looking very angry and soaking wet.

 **HPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTH**

Sirius Black was having the strangest experience of his life. He had landed in a cold damp forest which looked gloomier than the Forbidden Forest at Hogwarts, been captured by what he now understood to be an elf and been taken to a palace deep in the heart of the forest. There, he had been separated from the dwarves, then interrogated by this 'King Thranduil' as to where he had come from and what he was doing in the forest. When he had mentioned that he had spent time with some of the dwarves, the king got angry and decided to throw him in the dungeon for 'conspiring with those bothersome creatures'.

Now, he was currently sharing a jail cell with two angry, suspicious, grumpy looking dwarves.

"Who are you laddie, and how did you end up in the forest" said the white-haired dwarf. "Did you follow us?"

"My name is Sirius Black" said the young wizard, "and no I did not follow you. I had no idea you existed until last night. I was transported here, by a force of nature. Who are you both?"

"My name is Balin" said the white-haired dwarf. "This here is Thorin Oakenshield, King under the Mountain."

"Not yet, Balin" muttered Thorin dejectedly.

Sirius' eyes lit up all of a sudden. "So, you must be Kili and Fili's company!".

A look of anguish passed over the dwarves' faces.

"How do you know of my nephews?" said Thorin, pain lacing his voice. "They both perished while we were escaping the goblins in the misty mountains."

"No, they didn't" said Sirius quickly. "They fell down into the caverns, but before they hit the bottom they were transported by a magical force into my realm, where they met me and my friend James. I came back through the same magical force, and that's when I landed in the forest. Knowing what James is like, I can bet that he would have stepped through the force moments later, along with Fili and Kili."

A spark of hope lit up in Thorin's eyes. "They are alive" he whispered. "Thank Mahal".

"I have no idea where they will have ended up though" said Sirius, a sad look passing over his face. "There seems to be no logical pattern to these portals. Kili arrived at my home, and Fili arrived at James' home. We then had to fly to James' house before I ended up here."

"How on earth did you fly laddie?" said Balin, a look of confusion crossing his face.

Sirius suddenly comprehended the fact that these dwarves might not even know about magic, or wizards.

"Doesn't matter" he said quickly. "What are we going to do now? We are currently stuck in these dungeons after all".

"We escape" said Thorin with a look of determination. "We get to Laketown and make our way to Erebor from there".

"How will we manage that?" pondered Sirius.

A small cough from outside the bars of the cell made the three inhabitants jump.

"I might be able to help with that" said Bilbo Baggins.


	9. Chapter 9

James Potter was doing something very unusual for a teenage wizard – he was riding on the back of a horse. He had never even seen one of the creatures before, let alone ridden one, but all in all it wasn't too unpleasant. The horse seemed to sense its rider's nerves and was therefore taking care not to jostle the young man too much.

"So, tell me James Potter" said Elrond curiously. "Who are you, and where do you come from? We did not get much chance to speak before departing from Imladris".

"Well my Lord" began James nervously, "I am from another country, far from here. I'm not even sure how to get back. I am 15 years of age, and I live in England, except for when I go to school at Hogwarts".

"What unusual names" said Elrond. "And what do you learn at this 'Hogwarts'?".

"Magic" said James. "It's where all the young wizards and witches go in Britain for their magical education."

Elrohir, who had been listening in to the conversation from atop his horse, spoke up. "I thought there were only 3 wizards on middle earth" he said curiously.

"Well, that may be true" said James, "but I am from a different realm, where there are lots of wizards, and witches too". He did not comment on the fact that there were five wizards mentioned in Tolkien's writings; he did not know whether they had yet to appear and was cautious of not changing history.

"May we see some magic?" asked Elladan, curiosity shining in his eyes.

"It is impolite to ask such things, my son" chided Elrond gently.

"It's alright" said James with a smile, "I would be happy to". He whispered a spell which produced colourful fireworks from the end of his wand. The two elven twins and the dwarf brothers looked on in amazement, whilst Elrond simply smiled, having seen similar displays from his dear friend Mithrandir.

"You must be a very good wizard James" said Kili in awe. "When we asked Gandalf to do some magic to stop the rain, he got very grumpy and changed the subject!".

James chuckled to himself, having recognised the name Gandalf from the book he had read.

"Mithrandir works in mysterious ways, Master Dwarf" said Elrond. "What puzzles me is these magical forces you speak of that has allowed you to step from one place to another. I wonder how they came into being".

"I have been wondering about those too" said James, a thoughtful look crossing his face. "Sirius was pulled through only minutes before us, and yet when we arrived, you said that you had received a letter from this 'King Thranduil' a few days ago."

"My only suggestion is that time may well work differently here to that of your realm" said Elrond. "I think that when we arrive in Mirkwood in a few days, you would do well to not get separated from your companion again."

The young wizard nodded in agreement, and carried on towards Mirkwood with the strange company, looking forward to the moment that he was reunited with Padfoot.

 **HPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTH**

Elethien was milling around the front courtyard of the palace. He had just returned from yet another spider hunt, and had given his report to Prince Legolas, who had been engaged elsewhere the past few days.

As he peered out into the distance, a party of horses appeared in his eyesight. The soldier immediately recognised three of the riders, and so, not being alarmed he called out to a nearby guard.

"Inform King Thranduil that Lord Elrond and his sons approach the palace" said the elf. The guard nodded in his direction before heading inside the palace.

It was not long before the party of six arrived at the open gates. "Greetings, Lord Elrond" said Elethien respectfully, placing a hand over his heart. He repeated the greeting to Elladan and Elrohir before turning towards the strangers. "Who is it that accompanies you?"

"This is Fili and Kili, nephews of Thorin Oakenshield and heirs to the throne of Erebor" said Lord Elrond. "And this young man here is James Potter, a visitor from another realm".

"Greetings to you all" said Elethien. "King Thranduil will wish to see you without delay. If you would be so kind as to follow me." After the party had dismounted from their horses, the elven soldier led them into the palace, ready to meet the Silvan elf king.

Mirkwood palace was every bit as grand as Elrond and his sons remembered it. Elethien led the party through the main entrance towards the biggest room in the palace, where King Thranduil held office.

The huge oak doors were pushed open, leaving Fili, Kili and James open-mouthed as they walked towards the dais where King Thranduil sat elegantly upon his throne. Even the dwarf brothers had to (begrudgingly) admit to themselves that the wide-open space was built using impressive stone work.

"Greetings to you, old friend" said Elrond respectfully, placing his hand over his heart.

"Greetings, my friend" said Thranduil in response. "It has been many years since you last visited the home of the wood elves. Tell me, what has spurred this sudden visit?".

"Well my Lord, as you see I have brought two dwarves and a human with me" said Elrond. "The dwarves are Fili and Kili, the nephews of Thorin Oakenshield, and the human is James Potter, friend of Sirius Black. They have come to humbly ask for their release. James and Sirius are not of this land, and I believe they are desperate to reunite and return to their home."

"I see" said Thranduil. He rose slowly from his throne, and elegantly moved down the steps of the dais to meet the party. "I am afraid you are too late. The party of dwarves escaped just over a day ago and took the human with them."


	10. Chapter 10

**36 hours previously…..**

The river roared as it fell angrily upon the rocks lining its banks. It's inhabitants desperately clung to the barrels they rode in, using all their strength.

Sirius was torn between a feeling of exhilaration and terror. He had never even seen a river of this size or power, let alone ridden along one! He concentrated on keeping himself upright in his barrel, determined not to fall out.

As he looked ahead, the young wizard suddenly spotted the poor Hobbit clinging on to one of the barrels for dear life. It had been Bilbo's suggestion to use the barrels as an escape method, however he had not had time to climb into one himself before they had been discovered by the elves. Now, the young hobbit looked terrified, not to mention soaked to the bone.

A new sound alerted Sirius to danger. He had been aware of the elves chasing them; in fact, it was only a quick 'Alohamora' on his part that had opened the gate at the start of the river and allowed them to pass through. But now he could hear terrible shrieking noises, and angry cries that almost didn't sound human. Out of nowhere, scores of creatures appeared with weapons in their hands. Their faces were contorted, and their flesh was an awful sight to look upon. Sirius didn't know what these creatures were called, but he knew that they were not there to help them; more like wound or even kill.

A startled cry from Bilbo caused Sirius to whip round suddenly. The barrel that the hobbit had been clinging to had jolted against one of the sharp rocks, causing Bilbo to lose his grip and slip into the river. Sirius just had enough time to cast a bubblehead charm in the Hobbit's direction before he suddenly found crude arrows being fired towards him. The young wizard swore, realising just how much of a dangerous situation he had landed himself in. He fired off a few stunning spells and other non-lethal hexes, satisfied when more than a few found their mark.

By this time, the elves had concentrated their efforts on killing the foul creatures rather than recapturing the dwarves. Sirius noticed that one blonde elf was attacking the creatures with deadly ferocity and precision, the likes of which he had never seen before. The young wizard dreaded to imagine what trials the Elven prince must have endured in his life to have reached such a stage.

Deciding that now was not the time for deep contemplation, Sirius re-concentrated his efforts towards firing spells at the creatures. He was relieved to see that their numbers were slowly dwindling; they did not seem to have the capacity to match up to the strength of the dwarves nor the precision of the elves. Gradually, the barrels moved further down the river, away from the elves and the orcs. Sirius sank down slightly into his barrel and turned his attention forwards to see a giant lake looming up ahead.

"Onto the next adventure" he thought to himself, his face a cross between grim determination and a small smile.

 **HPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTH**

The sun had just begun to set over Mirkwood's vast landscape. Lord Elrond and King Thranduil had retreated to the King's main study, having just retired from the evening meal. They had left Fili and Kili in the company of Elrond's sons and the crown prince. The two sat quietly, contemplating the events that had happened and wondering about what would unfold in the coming months.

"We are entering troubled times, my friend" said Elrond, a small frown lining his face. "The arrival of the two wizards has set in motion a new chain of events, and the future is unclear to me."

"Indeed" said Thranduil. "I confess, the arrival of the young wizard in my kingdom took me entirely by surprise. I knew of the dwarves as soon as they had entered Mirkwood, but the wizard appeared as though out of nowhere".

"As wizards are wont to do" said Elrond, a small smile appearing on his face as he thought of Mithrandir.

"It appeared as though the dwarves were just as surprised by his arrival as I myself was, for when I questioned them they did not appear to even know his name. The wizard spoke only of Fili and Kili, the dwarf king's nephews who have accompanied you here" said the King.

"I believe that they are from another realm" said Lord Elrond. "I conversed at length on our journey with the other young wizard, James, and he seemed to understand little of our lands, although I did feel as though he was hiding something from me".

"That is troublesome indeed" said Thranduil, his face remaining as expressionless as always. "More troublesome to me, however, is the fact that Thorin Oakenshield attempts to reclaim the mountain of Erebor. I warned him of the danger of waking that terrible beast, but as was to be expected, his dwarven stubbornness meant that he refused to listen to reason."

"I am also greatly concerned about what perils the dwarves may lead themselves into" said Elrond slowly. "But I cannot deny that it would be of great significance if their race were able to reclaim such an ancient stronghold. For I daresay that having dwarves seated in the Lonely Mountain once more would cause the enemy the utmost dismay".

The only response that the Elven Lord received from the King was a small quirk of his eyebrow.

"The dwarves are no longer in my lands" said Thranduil after a long pause. "I cannot stop them in their journey, but neither will I aid them. As for the two young ones, Fili and Kili, I shall not keep them prisoner, but neither shall I aid them in any way. It is their choice as to where their journey takes them next."

Not a moment after the Elven King had finished speaking, a guard suddenly burst through the doors, coming to an abrupt halt in front of the two elves.

"Forgive the intrusion my King" he said swiftly, "but I thought it of the upmost importance to inform you – the two dwarves and the young wizard have left the palace accompanied by Prince Legolas and are heading for Laketown."


	11. Chapter 11

James was unusually silent as he rode along on his horse. It was the same creature that had brought him from Rivendell to Mirkwood. The blond elf Prince had walked into the stables and requested that his own horse be prepared along with his guests' and nobody thought twice about questioning him. Fili and Kili had received some unusual looks from passing elves as they both struggled to climb atop the horse they had shared; however, in a rare display of kindness towards the smaller race, Prince Legolas had helped them up with not too much protest from the brothers.

James thought back to the conversation the group had had with Elrond's twin sons. Despite wanting to accompany them to Laketown, the twins had respectfully refused to abandon their father, not forgetting the fact that they were guests of the realm and did not want to offend the King. From the little that James had gathered, Thranduil was an elf who was easy to anger and was not to be disrespected. It seemed that Prince Legolas however had had no such qualms; he appeared to be taking the Orc attack within Mirkwood as a personal insult and wanted to wipe every single one of the creatures out.

They had set out from Mirkwood in the evening, after the sun had set, and ridden through the night, stopping only for short breaks to rest. During that time, Prince Legolas had spoken at length with the two dwarf brothers and James. Despite some initial tension, the wizard could see the elf slowly warming to Fili and Kili, and he smiled to himself, thinking of the similarities back home between wizards and muggles (or most of them, anyway).

As the first light of dawn began to show itself, out of the distance James could see a small town appear at the edge of the huge lake they had been travelling around. But as they got closer, his heart stopped. He could see that most of the wooden houses that hovered above the water were little more than smouldering ruins, and a thick grey smoke clouded the air. On the shore, there were dozens of people, some able to stand, some not moving at all.

"Sirius" he croaked.

A look of alarm passed between the four riders as they fully comprehended the sight before them.

"Come quickly" said Prince Legolas. "We must find out what has happened here". He whispered to his horse in Elvish and rode on ahead, the others close behind.

The smell of death and destruction when they reached the shore was overwhelming. James was reminded of the pictures he had seen in the Daily Prophet of the aftermath of the Death Eater's attacks, but to see it in real life was a whole different story. The atmosphere was thick and penetrating; there was an aura of grief and desperation that could be heard through the cries of the people around them.

Legolas, who had already jumped down from his horse, spotted a man dressed in a guard's uniform and went to speak to him, pressing a silver coin into the man's hand as he did so. Fili, Kili and James waited anxiously with bated breath as they conversed. When he returned, Legolas spoke solemnly, his face grim.

"The dwarves and the other wizard did indeed pass through here" he said swiftly. "They stopped for a short time before making their way up towards the Lonely Mountain. No-one heard anything, until suddenly the earth itself shook, and the dragon was released from inside the mountain. It seems that Smaug caused a great deal of destruction until he was eventually shot down with a black arrow by a man named Bard."

James let out a breath that he did not realise he had been holding. He was beyond grateful that Sirius had not been caught up in the terrible destruction that had occurred here.

"They will be alright" said Fili shakily, a smile on his face. "We must ride up to Erebor with all haste".

"I would prepare yourself for many outcomes, Master Dwarf, both positive and negative" said Legolas cautiously. "The man told me that the dragon had been terribly enraged when he reached the town. It seems as though he had encountered the dwarves within the mountain."

James' heart sank as he heard the elf speak. He dreaded to think what had happened to Sirius and the other dwarves, having been in such a confined space. Fili and Kili's smiles vanished, before being replaced with a look of determination.

"I appreciate your words of wisdom, Master Elf, but I must not give up hope" said Fili determinedly. "We will ride to Erebor with all haste, for there is nothing we can do for these people here. Will you accompany us?"

"Nay, this is where we must part, for now at least" said Legolas. "I have some measure of healing abilities; therefore, I will help the wounded as best I can before I continue to hunt for the Orc filth that penetrated my lands. I wish you the best of luck for the rest of your journey."

With that, he moved away into the crowds of people, taking his horse with him.

"Well then" said Kili, "we must head to Erebor with all haste. I know we are all tired, but I for one cannot rest until I know what has befallen my kin."

James and Fili nodded their heads in agreement. Despite feeling rather exhausted, the young wizard knew he would not stop worrying until he had seen Sirius, alive and well in front of him. The three turned their horses away from the shore and headed in the direction of the Lonely Mountain, which loomed over the hills as though to represent their increasing apprehension.

None were aware of the army of Elves, led by King Thranduil and accompanied by Elrond and his sons, headed towards Laketown.

Nor were they aware of the army of orcs and goblins, headed towards Erebor from the Misty Mountains, bent on destruction and chaos.

Nor were they aware of the fight that was yet to come.

 **HPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTHHPTH**

 **A/N: I have made some small alterations regarding the timings of the events in my story, in Chapter 9 and 10. Feel free to go back and take a look if you want to! I am writing this story as AU, meaning that I am taking quite a few liberties. There will be aspects from the books, aspects from the movies, and aspects that are my own. Hope that you are enjoying reading it so far; any reviews would be greatly appreciated!**


	12. Chapter 12

Fili and Kili did not know what to expect when they finally reached the Lonely Mountain. Truth be told, they had not even been sure that they would reach it, with all the trials they had faced on their journey. They were grateful to Mahal beyond words to have survived for so long. Even after the worst had happened, when Fili had fallen from the ledge into the depths of goblin town, and Kili had dived after him without a second thought; the two dwarf brothers were alive, reunited, and had become friends with another wizard!

The two dwarf brothers instinctively knew that they could trust James (and Sirius). Although they had spent more time with the former, they could tell that the young men had not an evil bone in their body, and that James was desperate to be reunited with his friend. From the way the young wizard spoke about Sirius, or 'Padfoot' as he sometimes called him, Fili and Kili knew that they were as close as brothers. This fact, along with their desire to be reunited with their own kin, had led them to travel relentlessly along the winding path, until finally the three stood facing the great front gates.

"We're here" said Kili, anticipation in his voice.

"Why has Uncle Thorin and the company not come to greet us" said Fili worriedly.

"Try not to panic" said James reassuringly, thinking of the events that occurred in Tolkien's book. "They may not have noticed our approach. Let's head inside and try to find them".

The two dwarves nodded in agreement, and so they secured their horses to a nearby tree and headed in to the mountain. The sight that greeted them was breath-taking; piles upon piles of glittering gold, silver and gems, which seemed to go on as far as the eye could see. Before any of them could begin to express their thoughts about the sight before them, a flying mass leapt towards them in a blur of colours.

"JAMES!".

Sirius couldn't speak for several seconds; so happy was he to have been reunited with James. He held on to him for dear life, scared that he was dreaming, and he might disappear again.

James was in a similar state of shock and happiness. He hugged Padfoot back fiercely, before stepping back and giving him a good old slap on the shoulder.

"And where have you been?" he asked in mock anger. "Disappearing into a void like that and having adventures without me is downright rude you know".

Sirius held his hands up and tried to look innocent. "To be fair mate, I didn't know I was about to get sucked into… this!" he said, gesticulating with his hands at the vast wealth of treasure around them. "Although I have been involved in some pretty crazy stuff which I need to tell you all about!".

Suddenly, there was the sound of bare feet slapping on stone floor, followed by the sight of a (slightly out of breath) Hobbit. Bilbo stopped short, as he took in the sight of the group before him.

"Fili! Kili!" he cried happily. "It's so good to see you! We all thought, after Goblin town….. Thorin will be so happy to see you! He was devastated when…. Well never mind that! What has happened to you both?"

"It's a long and complicated story Bilbo" said Fili with a small smile. "We are keen to tell you all and hear your story as well. Where is our Uncle and the rest of the company? How do they fair?"

Bilbo's smile faltered for a second. Sirius' smile also dimmed as a shadow fell across his face.

"They are… alive" the Hobbit said slowly. "But Fili, Kili, I must warn you…. This gold, this treasure, it has changed them."

"What do you mean?!" Kili exclaimed, disbelief crossing his face.

"I think it's this place" said Bilbo. "There is a sickness in the air. It has caused the company to behave quite oddly. Thorin in particular is obsessed with finding the Arkenstone; he has barely eaten or slept since we arrived." The poor Hobbit stood wringing his hands together anxiously as he watched the brothers for their reaction.

Fili took a deep breath before smiling reassuringly at the Hobbit. "It's okay Bilbo, we will speak to our Uncle and talk some sense into him. Lead us to the company".

James looked questioningly at Sirius, trying to gage his reaction to what the Hobbit was saying. Sirius gave a slight shake of his head in response, indicating that they would speak later. It was an anxious party that followed Bilbo deeper into the mountain; only James having any inkling of what was yet to come.


End file.
